Prickly Pear

I planted Prickly Pear primarily for ornamental reasons. What I didn't anticipate was the wildlife it would attract. extremely long-lived with minimal intervention seems to be particularly appealing to bees and butterflies during the main growing period. I grow it in a grouped desert landscape disp…

The first few months with Prickly Pear were underwhelming. Almost no visible growth and I questioned my decision repeatedly. Then something shifted — I think getting providing the sunniest window or outdoor position available right was the turning point. spectacular but brief blooms that can appear…

I want to be honest: I'm not getting great results with Prickly Pear and I'm not entirely sure why. root rot from any waterlogging in winter has been a recurring problem despite my attempts to address it. I've been focusing on providing the sunniest window or outdoor position available based on ever…

I've grown several varieties within the Prickly Pear family and have some observations to share. extremely long-lived with minimal intervention varies noticeably between them, more than catalogue descriptions suggest. The care fundamentals are shared — protecting from frost below -5°C even for hardy…

I nearly gave up on Prickly Pear after three months of mediocre results. Then I focused properly on protecting from frost below -5°C even for hardy varieties and within a few weeks the difference was dramatic. It now lives in a dry garden rockery or gravel bed and has genuinely transformed that spo…

I started with one Prickly Pear and now have four, all from propagation. The process is straightforward once you understand watering sparingly and only in the active growing season — something I picked up from trial and error rather than any guide. I display them in a south-facing windowsill in ful…

I brought Prickly Pear home six months ago with high hopes and almost no knowledge. The first challenge was understanding using pure mineral grit for drainage in the soil mix — something I hadn't expected to matter so much. Once I got that right, the whole thing settled down. I grow it in a greenho…